Ryan Day's Son RJ Joins Ohio State Rival After Making Decision on Big Ten Football Commitment

The son of Ohio State coach Ryan Day will be crossing paths with his father at the next level.

Quarterback RJ Day, who attends St. Francis DeSales High School, announced his commitment to Northwestern on Saturday:

Day is No. 86 at his position in 247Sports' composite rankings for the 2027 class. Purdue, Cincinnati, Boston College, Syracuse and South Florida were among the other schools that offered him a scholarship.

As a member of the Wildcats, Day will be playing under offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, who had the same role with Ohio State in 2024. Kelly also coached Ryan at the University of New Hampshire.

"It's really surreal when you think about the relationships that we've had with those two as a family over the years," he told ESPN's Eli Lederman. "Coach Kelly coached my dad in college, so that adds another layer to it."

Day has had a prolific high school career. In three years at DeSales, he has 5,714 career passing yards and 54 touchdowns.

It doesn't look as though the Buckeyes showed serious interest in the senior-to-be despite his family connections.

OSU has a commitment from Brady Edmunds, a 4-star recruit in 2027, and Tavien St. Clair was a 5-star talent in 2025. Through his past pursuits of Will Howard and Julian Sayin, Ryan Day has shown a willingness to be aggressive in the transfer portal when an opportunity arises as well.

RJ will have a more attainable path to the starting role at Northwestern.

The Wildcats list eight quarterbacks on their 2026 roster, but Aidan Chiles and Gavin Frakes are both seniors. Nicco Marchiol and Aidan Gray are redshirt juniors.

The QB room should open up a bit once Day arrives and more so by the time he has a year under his belt.